Consecrated men and women of Regnum Christi analyze the path ahead of them

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Meetings are held over a period of several days of conferences, analysis and prayer in different territories

Group photo of the consecrated men and women with Fr. Ghirlanda and Fr. Magaña in the retreat center of Amecameca (Mexico)

Rome, February 13, 2012. In a conference this past January
24th in the see of the assistant to the
general director in Rome, the Papal Delegate, Card Velasio
De Paolis, along with his advisors, offered an introduction
to the work that the consecrated members of Regnum Christi
have begun. He also gave a succinct description of
the process that the Legion of Christ and the
Movement have undergone since his nomination as the Holy
Father’s Delegate. The text sent ahead of time by Card.
De Paolis, and the recording—which includes spontaneous inserts as
well as an exchange of questions and answers at
the end—were distributed to all the Legionary communities and
the teams of consecrated men and women.

In early February,
they gathered in different countries to receive a series
of talks, meant to facilitate their understanding of such
topics as “Associations of the faithful”, “Participation of lay people
in the charism of a religious institute” , “Consecration
of life at the service of the Kingdom of

God. A path to holiness”, “The evangelical counsels in the
lay state of life”, “Seeking to be faithful to
the Gospel”, “Spiritual discernment”, “Consecrated life as a canonical
state in the Church”, and “Common fraternal life and
apostolic action”. The themes and handouts were the same in
all three encounters. Card. De Paolis has called this
the “illuminative” stage, in which all are seeking a
deeper understanding and appreciation for consecrated life itself, which
in turn will be a starting point and will guide
the steps to be taken in their teams. The
final goal is the revision of the Statutes which
govern the life of the consecrated men and women of
Regnum Christi.

The three gatherings, each consisting of three full
days, took place in the retreat center of Amecameca,
in Mexico; the see of the assistant to the
general director in Rome; and the novitiate of the Legion
of Christ in Sao Paulo, Brazil. In Rome, consecrated

members from Europe were gathered; in Mexico, those who
work in North America and Mexico; and in Brazil,
those from South America. In the feminine branch, participants included
directors, formators and other members who were voted in.
The masculine branch proceeded analogously. Card. Velasio De Paolis
and Fr. Agostino Montan, C.S.I., held the conferences in
Rome, while Fr. Gianfranco Ghirlanda, S.J. and Fr. Jaime
Emilio González Magaña, S.J. gave them in Mexico and Brazil.
Fr. González Magaña is a spiritual theology professor and
director of the Interdisciplinary Center for the Formation of
Priestly Formators, at the Gregorian University in Rome.

Each
day began with Eucharistic adoration. The rest of the
morning was set aside for the conferences, followed by moments
of prayer and personal reflection. In the afternoons there
were more conferences, group meetings and at the end

During the Eucharistic adoration of the consecrated men and women in Mexico

of the day, before the Eucharistic Celebration, there was
time for each group to share the results of their
meeting with the speakers and rest of the assembly.
A consecrated woman who participated in Rome wrote: “There
was a climate of prayer, listening and dialogue. It was
beautiful to see significant convergence on the essential aspects,
which the Holy Spirit has written on our hearts,
and openness as well on everyone’s part to hear
different opinions.”

The participants of this first “illuminative” stage returned
to their teams ready to pass on their experience
over the past few days, and to form part
of the meetings that all teams of consecrated men and
women will now have to continue reflecting on the
aforementioned topics. As Cardinal De Paolis emphasized at the
beginning, the sole objective of the conferences is to
enlighten the path that the consecrated members are beginning to
tread.